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2004 NCAA
PCU Dolphin Gabby Espinas on his team’s dramatic turnaround
“We were underdogs the year we won the crown kasi last placer kami in 2003. Hindi kami pinapansin at lagi kaming kinakaya-kaya ng iba. What they didn’t know was our coach, Loreto Tolentino, kept us focused on winning. He worked us hard during practice and even slept in our quarters the night before games just to make sure no one would go out. Our Final Four game against Letran was the most memorable. Everyone was saying the winner of our game would take home the crown. It felt like a championship game. Fouled-out halos lahat kaming first five. But our teammates—Dennis Bartolome and Roger Sanz, particularly—saved the season for us. That championship changed my life! Bonus na rin that I became the first player in NCAA history to win the MVP and Rookie of the Year awards. When I look back at that season I realize na kung di ako napunta sa PCU, wala ako ngayon sa PBA.

1974 NCAA
Green Archer Lim Eng Beng on shooting his way to an NCAA championship
Tell us about your MVP year in 1974.
It was the golden anniversary of the NCAA and it was also my last year in La Salle. I wanted to leave a mark before I leave the NCAA, so I promised to myself that I would play my best. I even promised the La Salle brothers that I would give the school another championship.
You averaged 32 points per game that year and broke the NCAA single-game scoring record with your 55-point explosion against Letran.
Talagang sakripisyo ako sa practice just to get better. But I never ever imagined that I would break the 52-point record of Ricky Pineda of Letran. During our game against Letran, I didn’t know what happened. Bawat tira ko pasok, even my impossible shots. We ended that season with a championship win against Ateneo.
Would a runner-up finish diminish the impact of your record-breaking performance?
Bale wala yun if we didn’t win the championship. The championship was far more important to me. Because of it, my school retired my number 14 jersey. I was the second player honored that way—and it felt great.